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Estimate Rent Assistance from your rent and family situation.
Rates effective from 20 September 2026. This is a rent-based estimate, before income, maintenance or shared-care adjustments.
Enter your own eligible rent or share of the rent, not the whole property's rent. Use private rent, excluding meals, bills and other costs.
Choose the family situation that applies to you. Sharing a home does not always mean the sharer rate applies. For respite care, this estimates the person remaining at the principal home. The options with children use Family Tax Benefit rates only. Families receiving Rent Assistance through another payment need a Services Australia assessment. Shared or regular care is not modelled.
The estimate uses whether you tick this box. It does not check whether you can get that payment or whether your accommodation qualifies for Rent Assistance.
Enter your rent, choose a family situation and tick the box if you get the payment shown.
A single person without children pays $257.80 per fortnight in eligible private rent. Assume they receive a qualifying payment and the ordinary single rate applies.
Subtract the $157.80 threshold from rent, then multiply the difference by 0.75. The engine estimates $75.00 per fortnight, or $37.50 per week. This is below the $223.80 maximum.
The example does not assess eligibility or apply any reduction from the underlying payment’s income test.
Estimates only. Not financial or tax advice. Full disclaimer for your rights and our limitations of liability.
This calculator exists to show you the arithmetic. It applies published Australian rates, thresholds and formulas to the numbers you enter and shows the working, so you can check it. That is all it does — it produces a number and describes what the number is. It does not recommend anything and it holds no opinion about any financial product.
What can move this result
This calculator is not intended to be relied on for the purposes of making a decision in relation to a financial product. Before you make a financial decision, consider obtaining advice from someone who holds an Australian Financial Services Licence. We do not, and we cannot advise you.
Rent Assistance starts with a rent threshold for your family situation. Each dollar of eligible rent above it adds 75 cents to the rent-based estimate. The amount stops increasing at the maximum.
You may be eligible if you receive a qualifying payment or FTB Part A above the base rate, pay rent above the threshold and live in eligible accommodation. This tool assumes private rent. Public housing is excluded and younger recipients can have extra payment-specific rules.
For couples living together, enter combined rent. The couple estimate is a combined amount and may be split between recipients. For illness-separated couples, enter the individual’s rent. For respite care, use the rent of the person remaining at the principal home.
Families with children usually receive Rent Assistance with FTB Part A. The options with children use that payment. Tick the box if you get more than the base rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A. If Rent Assistance is paid with another income support payment, this family estimate does not apply. Shared or regular care needs a separate calculation. Income and maintenance tests can reduce the rent-based amount shown here.
| Family situation | Rent threshold | Maximum estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Single, no children | $157.80 | $223.80 |
| Single sharer, no children | $157.80 | $149.20 |
| Couple, no children (combined) | $255.80 | $211.00 |
| Illness-separated or partner imprisoned, no children | $157.80 | $223.80 |
| One of a respite-care-separated couple, no children | $157.80 | $223.80 |
| Single, one or two children (FTB Part A) | $207.34 | $263.06 |
| Single, three or more children (FTB Part A) | $207.34 | $297.36 |
| Couple, one or two children (FTB Part A) | $306.60 | $263.06 |
| Couple, three or more children (FTB Part A) | $306.60 | $297.36 |
| One of a separated couple, one or two children (FTB Part A) | $207.34 | $263.06 |
| One of a separated couple, three or more children (FTB Part A) | $207.34 | $297.36 |
This calculator is not intended to be relied on for the purposes of making a decision in relation to a financial product. Before you make a financial decision, consider obtaining advice from someone who holds an Australian Financial Services Licence. We do not, and we cannot advise you.
Rent Assistance is an extra payment linked to an eligible Centrelink payment or Family Tax Benefit Part A. It helps with eligible rent or accommodation costs.
This calculator estimates the rent-based amount from the published table. It does not work out your entitlement to another payment or your final Rent Assistance payment.
The rent-based estimate adds 75 cents for each dollar of eligible rent above your family situation's threshold, up to its maximum. For a single person without children, the maximum in this table is $223.80 per fortnight. Your payment, income and circumstances can change what is paid. See Services Australia's rates.
The fortnightly thresholds are $157.80 for a single person without children, $255.80 for a couple without children, $207.34 for a single parent and $306.60 for a couple with children. Rent must be above the applicable threshold. See the current rate table for separated couples and other situations.
The single sharer maximum is $149.20 per fortnight. The rent threshold stays the same as for other singles without children. The lower cap does not reduce estimates already below it. Sharing a kitchen, bathroom or bedroom can matter, but exemptions apply, including for Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment recipients. Check the DSS sharer rules before choosing that option.
Families with dependent children usually receive Rent Assistance through FTB Part A. You may be eligible if you receive more than the base rate and pay eligible rent above the threshold. For the family estimates here, tick the box if you get more than the base rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A. Their estimate is before income, maintenance and shared-care adjustments. Rent Assistance through another income support payment needs a separate assessment. The Family Assistance Guide explains these rules and regular-care arrangements, which this tool does not assess.
Services Australia excludes rent for housing owned or managed by a state or territory housing authority. Community housing can have different treatment. This calculator assumes eligible private rent; it does not decide your accommodation eligibility. Check eligible accommodation types.
Rent Assistance thresholds and maximum rates are indexed on 20 March and 20 September each year. This calculator uses the table effective from 20 September 2026, read on 11 October 2026. Check Services Australia's current table when the next indexation occurs.
To estimate your income support payment separately, use the Parenting Payment Calculator or the JobSeeker Payment Calculator. This Rent Assistance estimate does not include either payment.
Studying or training? Use the Youth Allowance Calculator or the Austudy Calculator to estimate the basic payment after the relevant income tests.
For the underlying family payment, use the Family Tax Benefit Calculator. To compare rent periods, use the Rent Calculator.